The Middle Ages

The Normans built cathedrals and castles after the conquest of 1066. English Gothic then became low, long and rich in vaults.

Durham Cathedral, begun in 1093, has some of the earliest rib vaults in Europe. Salisbury was built almost in one campaign in the 13th century and later received the tallest spire in England.

Late English Gothic, Perpendicular, has straight vertical mullions and fan vaults, as in King’s College Chapel in Cambridge. Westminster Abbey, the coronation church, was rebuilt in the Gothic style from 1245.

• Durham Cathedral
• Salisbury Cathedral
• Westminster Abbey
• King's College Chapel